Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to Web applications. In particular, the invention is related to a system and method by which a business entity provides an incentive to a third party to develop and publish a Web application that facilitates access to a Web service hosted by the business entity.
Background
A Web service is a software system designed to support interoperable machine-to-machine interaction over a network, such as the Internet. A Web service typically includes a back-end system for performing basic functions necessary to provide the service as well as Web APIs (application programming interfaces) for submitting service requests to the back-end and optionally receiving content in return. A Web application is typically used to present a front-end for the Web service to a user's Web browser. The services accessed by a remote user in this manner may include, for example, an e-mail service, a news service, an on-line shopping service, an on-line dating service, a news service, a job-search service, an employee-search service, or the like.
Often, a business entity that hosts a Web service also develops and hosts the only Web application(s) that can be used to access to the service. This enables the business entity to maintain tight control over how the Web service is accessed. Such tight control may be desired for any number of reasons, including but not limited to reducing system complexity, achieving security goals, or ensuring that the service is offered to the public in a uniform manner.
However, there are instances where a business entity may want to encourage third parties to develop and publish Web applications that provide a separate and different means for accessing the business entity's Web service. For example, due to resource constraints, the business entity may be incapable of developing Web applications that include all of the tools and features required to meet the needs of niche users. In this instance, the participation of third-party developers may be desirable or even necessary. In particular, by developing and publishing applications that include tools and features that are relevant to niche users, third-party developers can enable the business entity to provide the Web service to otherwise-inaccessible niche markets.
Furthermore, by encouraging third parties to build and publish Web applications that facilitate access to its Web service, a business entity can increase the number and diversity of Web applications available for leveraging its service. Innovation by such third parties may result in the generation of a more useful and interesting feature set for users of the Web service. This has the net effect of increasing the value of the service to the users which, in turn, provides a competitive advantage to the business entity.
Additionally, by building and publishing Web applications that use a particular Web service, third parties may increase the overall visibility and accessibility of that Web service. This may result in an increase in the number of consumers of the Web service as well as an increase in the amount of traffic to the Web site of the business entity that hosts the Web service.
Thus, as noted above, there are several reasons why a business entity hosting a Web service may want to encourage third parties to develop and publish Web applications that facilitate access to the Web service. At a minimum, the business entity must provide such third parties with access to the Web APIs necessary for building such applications. Equipped with these Web APIs, a third party might develop and publish such a Web application simply because they exact some personal satisfaction from doing so or as a matter of public service. However, absent some financial incentive, it is unlikely that a large number of third parties will invest the time, money and energy necessary to develop and publish such applications.
If the Web service already has a large number of users, one potential financial incentive for the third party is to attract the same large number of users, or some portion thereof, to their own Web site. However, increased traffic to a third-party Web site does not always result in increased revenue for the third party. Moreover, such an incentive does not even arise where the Web service does not have a large number of users.
What is needed, then, is a system and method by which a business entity can provide an incentive to a third party to develop and publish a Web application that facilitates access to a Web service hosted by the business entity. The desired system should provide a more direct financial incentive to the third party for developing and publishing such a Web application than merely attracting a pre-existing set of users of the Web service to a Web site published by the third party.